Hello

I'm Jesse Grabowski

Econometrician and Data Analyist

Hello! I’m Jesse Grabowski. Economist and data scientist, specializing in transformation of unstructured data into actionable business intelligence. Well versed in numerous statistical programming languages including Python, R, and STATA. Strong background in economic and financial theory and modeling. Experience working all around the world, in diverse, multi-lingual environments.

At a Glance

4

Languages

spoken professionally

3

Continents

of work experience

155

Projects

over 3 years

36

Videos

on economic modeling

Professional Skills

Python
STATA
R
Excel
Data Visualization
Presentation and Verbal Communication
Research and Data Collection
Web Scraping
Teamwork
Written Communication

Portfolio

A Feed-Forward Neural Network From Scratch

Machine Learning

A Feed-Forward Neural Network From Scratch

Machine Learning

Project Name
A Neural Network From Scratch
Prepared For
National Research University Higher School of Economics Introduction to Deep Learning

A simple multi-layer perceptron network classifier with ReLu activation and adam optimizer. The class can train deep neural networks with an arbitrary number of hidden layers and shapes. Out of sample accuracy on the MNIST digits dataset was 97%, using mini-batches of 5000. You can check out the project here.

Prediction of Corporate Failure Using Financial Ratios

Finance Machine Learning

Prediction of Corporate Failure Using Financial Ratios

Finance Machine Learning

Name
Prediction of Corporate Failure
Prepared for
Sorbonne Master of Financial Economics

A partial reproduction of Financial Distress and Corporate Acquisitions: Further Empirical Evidence (Theodossiou, Panayiotis, et al. 1996), focusing on prediction of corporate default and comparison of several econometric and machine learning models. View the whole project here.

Replication of Burnside and Dollar (2000)

Econometrics Economics

Replication of Burnside and Dollar (2000)

Econometrics Economics

Project
Burnside and Dollar (2000) Replication
Prepared for
Paris 1 Sorbonne Master 2 in Financial Economics

A replication of the controversial Burnside and Dollar (2000) Aid, Policies, and Growth. This reproduction was done fully in Python, using several novel econometric models not included in the main Python statistical packages. The full reproduction can be found here. 

Reinforcement Learning in Central Banking

Economics Machine Learning

Reinforcement Learning in Central Banking

Economics Machine Learning

Project
Reinforcement Learning in Central Banking
Other title
Learning an Optimal Interest Policy from Experience

An OpenAI Gym compatible economy for a robot central banker to learn an optimal policy rule, converting a classical problem in macroeconomics into a reinforcement learning problem. Some simple results are shown using a Q-Learning algorithm. You can view the whole project here.

Work Experience

2018-2019

Consultant

Provided data analytics and project management services. Lead a team to identify and coordinate with 3rd party vendors to provide extracurricular programs. Designed program curriculum using predictive models, and tracked program profitability.

2017 - 2018

Homeroom Teacher

As a homeroom teacher responsible for a single class of 24 students, I was able to incorporate data and metrics into my classroom to track student performance and intervene quickly when a student struggled with material.

2013- 2017

Teacher / Key Teacher

After Senegal, it was off to China. I taught English to students aged 5-15, and eventually was promoted to a "Key Teacher" position, responsible for on-boarding and mentoring new teachers.

2010-2012

Agricultural Technician

After graduating, I served 2 years in Senegal as an urban agriculture volunteer. I helped women's groups and hospitals apply for grant money, managed projects, and dug holes. I also used the analytics skills I saw in school to measure and evaluate project outcomes and improve accountability.

2008-2009

Intern

This was the beginning of my career. I developed the party website, and participated in events. I also met Mark Grebner of Practical Political Consulting, who showed me the power of analytics applied to decision making.

Education

2019-2020

Master of Science in Financial Economics

Paris 1 Panthèon-Sorbonne

2019-2020

Machine Learning and Reinforcement Learning in Finance

Coursera

2018-2019

Applied Data Science with Python Specialization

Coursera

2018-2019

PACP Certificed Associate in Python Programming

OpenEDG

2018 - 2019

Master of Science in Economics

Paris 1 Panthèon-Sorbonne

2015-2016

汉语水平考试 (HSK) Level 5

国家汉办/孔子学院

2004 - 2009

Bachelor of Arts in Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy

Michigan State University

2004 - 2009

Bachelor of Science in Economics

Michigan State University

Awards and Achievements

STAR TEACHER – 2016

Learning Star Foreign Teacher Award

I was recognized for exceptional contributions to the company in and out of the classroom with a “Star Foreign Teacher” award. Projects that lead to the award included creating marketing multimedia, designing new test papers for company-wide use, and assuming a customer-facing role, helping to boost sales and retention at my school.

RUNNER UP – 2020

European Central Bank Coding Challenge

I was invited to participate in the 2020 European Central Bank Coding Challenge, where I worked with a talented team of data scientists and economists to develop a news article classification model for the Risk Monitoring division of the ECB. We developed an LSTM model that did an excellent job identifying articles relevant to the Risk team in a short period of time.

USAID FOOD SECURITY – 2011

Ourossogui Hospital Garden

Patients are responsible for providing their own food during an extended hospital stay in Senegal. To supplement the rice and fish meals their families brought with nutritious vegetables, I wrote a grant to build a garden on the hospital grounds. The vegetables were provided free of charge to patients, improving health outcomes and food security among an especially vulnerable group.

My Interests

I love people and I love learning; this is what has driven me to travel all around the world. I also enjoy games, puzzles, reading, and long conversations with good friends. I wake up each morning and do a crossword puzzle with coffee before getting to the business of the day. I try to eat well and lift heavy, but that never goes as well as I hope (my combined personal best on the big 3 lifts – squat, bench, and deadlift – is an anemic 660 pounds). The important thing, though, is to get a bit better every day!

  • Reading
  • Power Lifting
  • Watching Movies
  • Travel
  • Video Games
  • Continuing Education
  • Debate and Discussion
  • Music